Charlotte - 10/8, Funky vs. the Queen City Options

[thefunkyredcaboose]

Starting my thread a little early because I am psyched for the show!!

Going to soundcheck and all... madness will certainly ensue. Will have a full review! Anybody else going?

[thefunkyredcaboose]

Alright I am dedicating this to +Ed+ because of his desperation. I will also go into some awesome detail just for you buddy.

We arrived for soundcheck at 4 and the owner of the Visulite answered the door. He really had no clue about whether we should be there or not but I've met him a couple of times so we got to come in anyway. He's a pretty nice guy I'll say, stopped and chatted with us about how long the band's tour rider is and how the venue didn't have hardly any of the things they requested.

After an hour or 2 of watching the techs test things out (the drum tech did a great solo) the band came out and soundchecked "Crying Time" and Kevin invited us up front. That was good because we really weren't sure what to do and didn't want to bother them. In between tunes the band tuned and goofed off including Sean playing the riff for "Barracuda" and CT playing "Walk This Way." It was funny to see the guys joke with each other, CG is a trip. Then they played the Depeche Mode cover and it was wicked good. After that it seemed they were done and we were starved, so we got some BOJANGLES (I love Bojangles) and I also got a call about a job. This was probably the best 30 minutes in a long time due to all of those things.

On the way back to the venue we ran into the guys as they walked to the tour bus. Joked with them a little and then headed inside. We got some drinks and settled in for American Bang. They were a lot of fun to watch, but I gotta admit the music really wasn't my thing. It was loud and I had a good buzz going so it was enjoyable enough.

We were able to get a spot right beside Kevin's monitor and in front of Pat and Sean when he did his solos. Great spot to see the show. Crowdwise it is hard for me to say, but I know there were over 100 there and it was a very loud and supportive crowd. The TGF set was off the charts. This is a seriously great show and has really come together since the Summerfest show (which was also great). The jam between CT and Sean during Guilty Fever was a really great touch, as well as his solo before the song. The backporch is great and a really unique idea. I really think they are onto something with the dirty blues stuff and hope that it makes more of an appearance on the next album. Also liked the choir-esque ending of Sing. It becomes important later but throughout the show CT was having a great time and getting his brew on.

I'll go on record as saying that while I enjoy this record a lot, these songs really come into their own live. They were just meant to be heard loud and have improv stuff going on during them. This is easily one of the top 5 shows I've seen from top to bottom, and that is saying a whole lot as I have seen some great shows. I am sore from rocking out, there's a cut on my leg that I just noticed right now, my neck hurts, I can't talk from trying to sing like Kevin. It was just awesome.

Afterwards we went through the line like good people and chatted with the guys. Got our lanyards signed (which works really well btw). Were able to thank Kevin for soundcheck entry. CT... did I mention he had been having some drinks? Well he really liked my wife (can't blame him he has great taste). I told him to "back the fuck off!!" jokingly and he offered his chin for me to give him a right hook. I didn't take him up on it, but that would have made a great story. He then told us several stories about getting punched in the face at various times.

After that we decided to stick around and chat some more and get some pictures. Caught Pat on the way to the bus and spoke to him briefly, then got to talk about drums with CG. We agreed the drum engineering on the new album is fantastic and you can tell he is just glad to be playing balls out rock music again. We had an extended conversation with Sean about a lot of different things, very few relating to the actual band. Then... more CT. CT told a bunch of stories relating to the alcohol, and it was amazing. Dude was telling about all kinds of crazy stuff that I can't even go into because it isn't fair to post a man's drunk talk. The pictures we got with him are amazing. I'm not sure if I can describe it much further, but lets just say he told stories for a very long time. Due to this, we unfortunately missed out on chatting with Kevin but... CT story time was worth it. We pointed him in the direction of the tour bus ("your face is on it") and went on our way.

Truly, a night to remember and can't wait for the next one!!